Swiss government freezes Mubarak’s accounts

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Swiss government moved swiftly on Friday to freeze all accounts held by Hosni Mubarak, his family and selected prominent Egyptians linked closely with his administration.

The list covered included Mr Mubarak and his wife, their two sons and their respective wives, as well as Mr Mubarak’s brother-in law.

Also included were Ahmed Alaa El Din Amin El-Maghrabi, a former minister for housing, services and urban development, Mohamed Zoheir Mohamed Wahid Garana, former tourism minister, Habib Ibrahim El Adli, former interior minister, Rachid Mohamed Rachid, former trade and industry minister, and Ahmed Ezz, a prominent businessman and former secretary of the ruling National Democratic party.

Bern’s formal decree called on all Swiss banks to check their records for funds held by the listed people and report these to the Swiss government, while freezing any transactions.

Andrй Simonazzi, Swiss federal government spokesman, said the authorities had no inkling of how much might be deposited in Swiss banks, or exactly by which members of the Mubarak family or its entourage. “In this way, the federal government will seek to avoid any risk of [misappropriation] of Egyptian state property,” the Swiss government said in a statement.

The special decree also ordered the freezing of all assets, including property and luxury goods. The move was accompanied by an exhortation form Bern to the Egyptian authorities quickly to follow the legitimate wishes of the people “in a credible, participative and transparent manner,” The Financial Times reported.

The Swiss move followed a similar decision last month regarding any assets held by Tunisia’s former ruling Ben Ali family and its followers, as well as Laurent Gbagbo, president of the Ivory Coast.

Switzerland has regularly been used by foreign potentates as a haven for their assets because of its bank secrecy, political stability and personal safety. However, progressive tightening of Swiss legislation has made it increasingly difficult to stash illegal funds in Swiss banks, or to lay claim to assets when a potentially corrupt leader has been deposed.

This month, Switzerland passed new legislation facilitating the return of illegally accrued wealth, even in cases where a country may not yet have put together a fully functioning justice framework.